Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 5th Episode 19 (section)

=== Part 4 ===
Finding Kuuga standing in the darkness, the girl seemed surprised.

"Who are you?"

Had she gone to play with friends and so arrived late? The ponytailed girl appearing in front of the mansion with the nameplate "Ichinokuro" was carrying a large stuffed doll that looked like it came from some game arcade.

There was also a boy next to her. Other than the plaster on his cheek he looked completely normal, but his eyes gazing at Kuuga were sharp.

"Good evening! Are you Ichinokuro Arisu-san?"

First he had to confirm he had the right person. It was the basic of a delivery.

"U-umm, yes…"

Although confused, Ichinokuro Arisu nodded.

Kuuga wore a full smile, bringing out the package covered in cloth.

"A delivery for you!"

"…A delivery?"

As Arisu attempted to accept the package, the boy near her stopped her.

"Who're you? Who sent this package?"

He was staring at him with clear alertness, but Kuuga kept his smile.

"The sender is the West Central Branch Development Unit. I'm part of the Special Unit, called Kuuga."

"From West? Didn't hear about it."

"Oh, how strange. Chika-chan… I mean, Sakura said you knew about this delivery."

"Sakura?"

The boy raised his face as if recalling something.

"Her… then, this is—"

"What is it, can I just take it?"

Although still suspicious, Arisu received the package.

Kuuga closed his eyes.

Along with the weight in his arms being lifted, he felt his heart turned lighter as well.

He savored the feeling of accomplishment as he protected yet another connection by his own hands.

"…A rod?"

Pulling off the cloth, Arisu's hand now held a rod. It was metallic and glowed in silver, and its length was only half of Arisu's arm.

“Yes, it does look like a rod.”

While glaring at the silver rod from many different angles, Arisu furrowed her brows.

"But it's somewhat… warm."

She asked Kuuga.

"What is this? How do I use it?"

But Kuuga couldn't answer. A hoarse sigh leaked from his barely open mouth.

"…?"

Arisu tilted her head quizzically when it happened.

The surroundings were enveloped in a silver glow.

"Eh…?"

Near the surprised Arisu a single butterfly alighted down.

Kuuga gulped as he watched this scene.

Kuuga had never seen a Mushi as beautiful as this. The Morpho butterfly with four antennas landed on Arisu's hand.

"Eek!"

The silver rod Arisu was holding instantly unfolded to be several times as long.

Immediately after, the Morpho butterfly transformed explosively. It became countless tentacles, stabbing into the long rod.

For some reason—Kuuga thought the Morpho butterfly looked happy. The silver glow was overflowing with vitality, and its motions transforming its body rapidly were extremely lively.

The Morpho butterfly's wings changed to a blade that emitted silver scales.

And the changes didn't stop with that.

The surface of the rod transformed to a silver glowing lance had traces of light running around it. The silver loci circulated all around the rod and its surface was faintly glowing. 

When he narrowed his eyes and looked better, he saw the glow's identity was a vivid pattern etched on the surface. The energy emitted by the Morpho butterfly ran through the entire rod as if amplifying it.

It was built of light yet solid material, equipped with a length-adjusting mechanism, possessed a route computation to reduce its energy consumption to its limits, the engraving based on those routes, and above all it had the molecular structure giving it the "warmth" desired by Mushi.

This weapon could be said the crystallization of the West Central Branch techniques, but even the user herself, Arisu, appeared to not understand the situation.

"W-what is going on with that…?"

"Idiot, don't just stand there! Since the Morpho butterfly's responding, there's an enemy—"

Before the boy finished talking, a large shadow captured Arisu who stood in a daze.

It was a black conehead grasshopper.

"I told you I won't let you get away!"

On top of the guillotine stage above Arisu's head, Yuuko was wearing a cruel smile.

"Chop!"

"Tch!"

The boy immediately reached toward Arisu. However—

"…!"

The Morpho butterfly's spear created a storm of scales.

[[File:Mushi_Uta_Bug_5th_p195.jpg|thumb]]

Scales numerous enough to cover their entire vision moved like a living being. They swallowed the large cricket along with Arisu.

"W-what's happening…"

Shaking off the scales, Yuuko raised a shriek.

The guillotine stopped moving.

"I can't… use my ability…? This is—"

Looking down her Mushi, Yuuko groaned.

The cricket's long legs folded. On top the guillotine stage losing its balance, Yuuko paled.

"My Mushi is sleeping—"

Arisu came back to her senses. With awkward movements, she swung the silver lance.

The cricket raised a cry.

The spear's flash shattered the guillotine and the scales it emitted scraped off half of its large body.

"Guh!"

The damage to the Mushi recoiled back as mental damage to the host. Holding her chest, Yuuko jumped to the ground with an anguished expression.

Glancing at Arisu with regret, she turned her body away. Unsummoning her Mushi, she vanished into the darkness with an unsteady gait.

Looking at her leaving form was all Kuuga could do.

Inside his blurring vision, the silver spear kept glowing brightly.

"I won't let you get away!"

"Wait, Daisuke! Something's wrong with this guy!"

He heard himself crumbling to the ground.

Noticing Kuuga's wounds that they hadn't seen due to the darkness, Arisu hurriedly called.

While feeling his body growing colder—

"…Maybe it was a bit of a tough mission, this time…"

Kuuga slowly closed his eyes.